HS2 Community and Business Funds

About High Speed Two

High Speed Two (HS2) is a new, high speed rail network which is being developed and promoted by HS2 Ltd.

HS2 is being constructed in two phases: Phase One is between London and the West Midlands. The High Speed Rail (London – West Midlands) Act received Royal Assent in early 2017 and preparation works are underway.

Phase Two forms a ‘Y’ shape from the West Midlands up towards Manchester and the North West and up towards Leeds and the North East (subject to future Parliamentary approval).

The Secretary of State has published Environmental Minimum Requirements (EMR) which set out the environmental and sustainability commitments that will be observed in the design and construction of HS2.

About the Community & Environment Fund and Business & Local Economy Fund

In October 2014 the government announced two funding programmes to help offset the disruption of Phase One on local communities and businesses – the Community and Environment Fund (CEF) and the Business and Local Economy Fund (BLEF).

A combined total of £40 million has been made available for these two funds over a period of 11 years. The funds will be released during the construction period and for the first year of operational HS2 (Phase One) services. The funds will provide support for good quality bids and money will be available throughout this time period.

Both funds will award money from the same funding pot and so the amounts allocated from each fund will depend on the number and quality of applications.

The funds were launched in February 2017 and applications are being accepted from 8th March 2017.

Fund Administration

The administration of these funds is managed on behalf of HS2 Ltd by the charity Groundwork.